Sugar Never Tasted So Good
by Antharyn
Summary: It's Shuuhei's birthday and Izuru gets him a present. Yaoi. Fluff. Shuuhei is a dork.


**Title:** Sugar Never Tasted So Good

**Pairing:** Hisagi Shuuhei/Kira Izuru

**Rating:** PG-13 because Shuuhei says the "F" word. Gasp!

**Notes/Warnings:** Yaoi. FLUFF. Written for Shuuhei's Birthday Challenge over at the Livejournal community ShuuKira.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own bleach or any of its sexy characters. I just borrow them and make them do my nasty bidding. They like it. A lot. :)

**A/N:** First off, I apologize in advance because with the amount of traveling I have been doing coupled with my inability to adjust to different timezones, people, and households (not to mention weather. Wtf, NY?) my brain simply refuses to cough up anything remotely interesting. Apparently, I forgot to pack my imagination in my suitcase the day I left. But here I present to you what little I was able to squeeze out of myself: sugary, brain-melting, eye-gouging fluff that I hope you will all enjoy.

Oh, and let's pretend coffee makers are more complicated than they really are. :D

* * *

"Open it," Izuru says as he timidly nudges the brightly wrapped package across the table and toward Shuuhei.

The brunet laughs and shakes his head. "Izuru, you didn't have to," he says as he pulls the present toward him. It's big and heavy, and wrapped so neatly that Shuuhei knows without a doubt that the blond had wrapped it himself. "What is it?" he asks, picking the present up and shaking it a little. Something of substantial weight shifts inside it and Shuuhei's eyes light up, making Izuru laugh.

"Normally, you have to open a present to find out what's inside, and will you be careful? It's fragile!" Izuru says, laughing. Shuuhei sets the package down on the table and grins. He likes to hear the younger shinigami laugh, likes to see the corners of his blue eyes crinkle and his body shake with mirth. He reaches out to the blond and takes his wrist.

"Help me open it," he says and pulls Izuru closer. The blond smiles affectionately and pulls on one end of the elegant bow. The ribbons fall away from the box easily and Shuuhei can't help but grin as he quickly takes care of the rest. The both of them are a mess of wrapping paper, ribbons, and flailing body parts for the next few minutes until finally Shuuhei unfolds the last of wrapper and lifts the lid off the box. Shuuhei's breath catches in his throat.

"Izuru..." he breathes softly as he stares down into the open box. The blond smiles at his reaction and leans in. Their cheeks touch.

"Happy birthday," Izuru whispers.

Shuuhei smiles and reaches into the box so he can glide his fingers across cool, smooth glass. It makes a delicate clink when he flicks it with his fingernail and he looks at the blond and grins. He tests the knobs and buttons carefully, flicking switches on and then off again, before he chuckles and he pulls Izuru into a loose hug.

"Thank you," he mutters into Izuru's hair and squeezes the blond's slightly smaller body against his before pulling away and holding him at arm's length. Blue eyes stare openly at him and Shuuhei feels his breath hitch for the second time in the last thirty seconds. Silence settles heavily over them until the blond blinks and breaks the spell.

"You have no idea what it is, do you?"

"I haven't got a clue."

* * *

"Where does this one go?"

Shuuhei stares dumbly at the black...thing...Izuru is dangling in front of his face. They've been at it for almost an hour now and it still doesn't look like they're getting anywhere. He looks back and forth between what the manual says the contraption should look like and what the combined efforts of two Vice-Captains have come up with so far. He's happy to say they don't look too different...if one looks at them doing a headstand and closing his eyes. He groans and buries his face in his hands.

Izuru immediately plops down to sit behind him and starts to massage his shoulders. Shuuhei leans back until his head is resting on the blond's chest. "How is it possible," he begins tiredly, "that we both graduated at the top of our class but can't figure out how to put this thing together?" He waves the empty coffee pot in the air for emphasis and Izuru takes it and puts it away before he breaks it. He feels Izuru's hands leave his shoulders and slip past his waist to pluck the manual from his fingers.

"Maybe we should start from the very beginning," the blond suggests, and Shuuhei closes his eyes and goes limp against him. He doesn't bother suppressing the urge to say "again" and feels Izuru start to laugh.

"Honestly," the blond says, his arms tightening around Shuuhei for a fraction of a second. "I should have just gotten you a book."

* * *

It really shouldn't be possible--in fact, it was downright embarrassing--but when Shuuhei hears a distinct click and feels the pieces in his hands snap into place he can't help but feel like he's made Vice-Captain all over again.

"Oh, thank fuck," he breathes and lets himself fall to the kitchen floor on his back. There's shuffling right next to him as Izuru rolls to lie on stomach and soon enough the blond is looking down at him curiously, their faces only a few inches apart.

He holds the gadget he has been wrestling with for the better part of fifteen minutes up in triumph and grins like an idiot.

* * *

"I don't think it's fair that you make better coffee than I do," Shuuhei says before he takes another sip. It's not perfect (too much water), but it's better than anything he can come up with one his own. "You don't even drink it."

Izuru rolls over the pillows he's lounging on to face him and smiles. They're in Shuuhei's bedroom now, lying on the bed. The smell of fresh coffee hangs in the air and they can hear the soft gurgling of the newly assembled coffee machine come in from the kitchen. Izuru takes a deep breath, taking in the scent of coffee, and then sighs. "Liar," he says, grinning. "It's water-downed mud."

Shuuhei sputters then starts to laugh. "It is _not_!" He reaches over and drags the pillows, with Izuru still on them, closer to his side. "You need to be more confident about yourself," he playfully admonishes the blond as he pulls him to sit up next to him.

"Yes, because not many people can make the perfect cup of coffee." Izuru's face is serious but the brunet knows him well enough to recognize the impish glint in his blue eyes.

"I didn't say it was perfect," Shuuhei scoffs and Izuru raises an eyebrow. Grinning, he leans in close until he can feel Izuru's breath fan out over his lips. "Needs more sugar," he whispers then presses his mouth against the blond's softly, kissing him, before pulling away and wrapping his arms around Izuru.

The blond sighs and snuggles into his chest.

Shuuhei rests his cheek on Izuru's head, nuzzling the fine hair against his skin, and closes his eyes when the blond turns his head so their cheeks touch. He takes another sip of his coffee and swallows. "So—" He begins, curling his finger around the handle of his mug and starting to smile.

"So my birthday is actually tomorrow."

* * *

**A/N:** Craving for more ShuuKira? Check out the Livejournal community solely devoted to the pairing at **http:// community. livejournal. com / shuukira /**

Fanfics and fanart are all open to the public so you don't even need an account to enjoy the ShuuKira love! Be sure to leave the authors and artists some love via commenting, though. Lol.


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